Denver has a rich jazz history. From the early 1930s, the historic black Five Points neighborhood was a stopping-off point for bands on their way from Chicago to the West Coast and became known as the “Harlem of the West.” Jazz clubs like The Rossonian, The Casino Ballroom and Sonny’s Lounge would host the Duke Ellington Orchestra, Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker and Nat King Cole. Outside of Five Points, jazz could be heard pouring out of the El Chapultepec Lounge and the Trocadero ballroom.
But despite this storied history, and unlike nearly every other U.S. city of its stature, Denver does not have a national jazz festival to celebrate the cultural importance of this great American art form and the amazing artists who continue to move the music forward.
Denver Jazz, a Colorado 501(c)(3) nonprofit, was created to fill this void with jazz performances and education events for the Front Range community. Denver Jazz Fest is an annual four-day event taking place in venues throughout the greater Denver-Boulder metro area every April. The festival is being curated to provide a wide range of jazz styles, to offer exciting and culturally relevant events for every audience.
Education events for college and high school music students, plus a community forum on current jazz-related topics with a focus on diversity and equity, will be offered to the public at no cost. An afternoon of free jazz concerts will be hosted at the Galleria of the Denver Performing Arts Complex, showcasing some of Denver’s finest jazz artists.
An event of this scale cannot operate on ticket revenue alone. Additional income from donations, grants and sponsorships will be necessary to offset the myriad programming, education, administrative and marketing expenses that will be incurred.
Please consider supporting Denver Jazz with a donation of whatever size you can afford, to help us establish Denver Jazz Fest as an ongoing initiative. Your tax-deductible contribution will benefit the entire Front Range community and ensure the festival’s future as an important feature of Colorado’s cultural landscape.
Send us a message to learn about volunteer opportunities and please keep in touch with news about our upcoming programs by joining our mailing list. Thank you!